Winners of $70M Powerball drawing have come forward

Len Melisurgo/The Star-LedgerJoseph and Celeste Tamburello, the owners of the winning Powerball ticket sold in Little Silver last week, have come forward to claim their $70 million prize.

LITTLE SILVER — Joseph and Celeste Tamburello, the owners of the winning Powerball ticket sold in Little Silver last week, have come forward to claim their $70 million prize.

Lottery officials will hold a noon press conference today to introduce the Tamburellos, who bought their ticket on March 21. Joseph and Celeste Tamburello own a home in Tinton Falls, according to public records.

The ticket purchased had a cash value worth $41.5 million. The odds of winning the jackpot are one in 175 million.

New Jersey is home to one other Powerball winner, Sandra McNeil, a Morristown resident who won $211 million on March 13, 2010.

Powerball is played in 42 states, the District of Columbia and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

The game, which was introduced in New Jersey in 2010, gives players nine ways to win. The top prize is won by matching five white balls in any order, plus the red Powerball.